Helmet for life-preservers and the like.



W. SIALLWORTH. HELMET FOR LIFE PRESERVERS AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-29. I91?- Patented Apr. 30, 1918;

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

uh/hm eooco W. W. STALLWORTH. HELMET FOR LIFE PRESERVEHS AND THE LIKE.APPLICATION FILED JAN. 29. I917.

Patented Apr. 30,, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- pan-Amnurn a re.

WILLIAM WESLEY STALLWORTH, OF GORDO, ALABAMA.

LME'I. FOR LIFE-PRESERVERS AND THE LIKE.

Application filed January 29, 1917. Serial No. 145,256.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM W. STALL- WORTH, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Gordo, in the county-of Pickens, State of Alabama,have invented a new and useful Helmet for Life-Preservers and the like;and I do .hereby declare the following I to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to an improved helmet for use in connection withlife preservers and the like, and one of the objects of the invention isto provide a two part or sectional helmet, the parts of which arehingedly united and provided with clamping means at a pointdiametrically opposite.

the hinge, to hold the helmet over the head of the wearer.

A further object of the invention is to provide one of the sections orparts with a tubular connection to a tank of compressed air, there beinga valve in said tubular connection to control the compressed air inpassing into the helmet.

A further object of the invention is to provide means consisting of atank having a tubular connection with the helmet, and a valve in saidconnection to control oxygen in its passage into the helmet.

A further object of the invention is to provide a pneumatic collar tosurround the neck of the wearer and be engaged by the opening in thehelmet, to insure substantially an air-tight, connection, there being atube including a valve, connecting the compressed air tube and thepneumatic, so that the pneumatic may be inflated.

A. further object of he invention is to provide a tubular piece having aconnection through one of the parts of the helmet provided with a ballcheck valve at one end, and amouth piece at the other end to enter themouth of the wearer of the helmet, to permit exhaling.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for introducing aspray of water or other suitable moisture into the interior of thehelmet.

In practical fields, the details of construction may necessitatealterations falling within the scope of what is claimed.

The invention comprises further features and combination of parts, ashereinafter set forth, shown in the drawings and claimed.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a view in elevation, showing the improvedhelmet constructed in accordance with the invention, and applied to asection 3, at a point substantially diametrically opposite the hinge 2,has an ear 4, provided with a slot 5. The other section 6, at a pointdiametrically opposite the hinge 2, is provided with a lug 7, to which,by means of the pin 8, a screw 9 is pivoted, whereby said screw mayengage the slot Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Apt, 301],119i,

5, and upon tightening up the winged nut 10 (which is threaded upon thescrew 9) the two sections or parts may be drawn tightly together. Themarginal edge of the part or section 6 is provided with a circular orannular channel 11, to receive the marginal edge of the part or section3, there i being a gasket or the like 12 in said channel, to insure atight joint between the two sections. The part or section 3 of thehelmet has acircular flanged opening 13, to the flange of which, aclamping ring 14 (angular in cross section) is secured, by

means of the rivets 15, whereby a circular 7 piece of isinglass 16 maybe clamped between the ring and the flange of said opening, therebypermitting the wearer to see from within the helmet. A pair of tanks 17and 18 are provided, the tank 17 to contain oxygen, thereby providingmeans, whereby the user, can be rapidly resuscitated 'when the helmet isplaced upon the users head when used in a-niine"after an explos1on ordurlng dnferent'states or condltlons of'mme gas,thereby 'provldlng meansfor admitting pure oxygen to the .user which anay, beuseduntil the userfeels that he'has been entirely resuscitatednnd .that"his.'lungs arefree of gases, while the'tank 18 is designed to contai'n compressed airwhich may be used to furnish air-"in its-normalstate or to thinoutthefioxygen in the helmet when oxygen is being used exclusively, or

if desired,onlyone tank may he'employed, -1nwh ch case comb1nedcompressed air and 1 oxygen 'may be contained therein, therebygprovicling :meansfor a combined mixture of compressed am having highoxygen properties {cause-during explosion in mines or whenthe mines:become filled withr'gas such for instance as coal-gas. The two tanks 17and 18 are held togetherby the bands '19, which are; provided with eyes20, which are engaged by the hooks 21 of the opposite" ends :of \thestrap 22,. whichsupports thea two tanks in position on the wearer. A secondistrapf 23,-has one-endconnected, as at- 24, to one of the bands 19,and is designed to pass about the waist of the wearer, and

,has: its :opposite end-detachably buckled, as

--at 25, to the' other'band 19. A tube' 26 cont nects the oxygen tankand the helmet, and

isgprovid'ed witha. valve 1 27, whereby the oxygen,-

:itsiflow ori'passage into *the 'helmet, a may {be controlled. One endof a tube -28 is connected at 29 to the compressedair tank,-- and "hasits other end connected at v 30 ,toithevhelmet, so as toicommunieatewith the interior thereof; i This" tube 281has a valve -3l-,"wherebythevcompressed'air, in its'pas- "sage from-the tank 18 into the: helmet,may

t be -controlled; The lower parts of the "two sections or partsz'ofthe'helmet arep'rovided with semi-circular cut-away portions 32,Which-,wh'enthe two parts or sections are brough-t together, as shown inthe "drawings This pneumatic, when that is, by stretching pneumatic 7-means of the tube 34, the pneumatic maybe inflated with compressedni'rfrom the'itank 18; hy openingsthe-eyalv es fil and -By haling. Hthreaded thereto a cap' or cover 47"ha'vn'1g an opening 48, 50 that'theexhaled alr may forming a circular opening when 'tions are'heldtogether, a pneumatic to suropening the valve 36, the pneumatic may bedefiated' A suitable receptacle or bottle 37, capable of beingdepressed, is provided, and may be carried in any suitable manner,

- preferably on the tank 17. A tube 38 extends from this receptacle orbottle "37 and is connected to the helmet, as shown at 39.

By opening the valve 40 and depressing the "bottle orreceptacle 37 whichmay contain any suitable fluid, preferably water or the like) a suitablemoist spray may enter the interior of the helmet, owing to the spraynozzle 41' being disposed at the end of'the tube'38, whichconnects tothe helmet. This spraying of the air, with water, within the helmet,will reduce the heatmf'the oxygen and-air-within the helmet, which maybecome-heated in the mine, for instance durfiingi gas fires so thattheuser of the helmet 'may easily breathe the air, it also cools andmoistens theair, thereby making sameeasier to breathe*andnot injurioustothe users lungs. The sectionnrpart 3, at itsup'p'er portion, isprovided'with a tubular compartment 42,. for the reception of a ballcheck valve 43, which controls the port or opening 44; Adjacent tothe-port or-opening 4:4 is an extension 45, to which a tube 46 1sconnected; The other "end of the tube 16 is provided with a mouthpiece47 to enter the mouth of the wearer, in order to permit' exi Thetubular compartment 42 has pass outwardly from the helmet" and the "ballvalve 43 becomes unseat'ed.

The invention' having been set' forth, What 1 is claimed 5 as new anduseful, is

I In a helmet for life preservers,'a pair of semi-sphericalglobularsections, means 3 for hingedly uniting said'sections atone sideof the helmet, the lnter engaging marginal edges of said sections havingp'acking means to-hisure a tight joint, a pivoted screw, wlng nut andslot connections for clamping the sections together diametricallyopposite their hinge" connections, one of *said sections having-atransparent member covered sight -'o'pen1ng, the lower parts of both*sections having semi-circular cutaway portions the secround the neck ofthe wearer and adapted to be engaged and indented bythe marginal edge ofthe circular opening, whereby water tight connectlons between thehelmet, pneumatic, and-'the-neck of the wearer inay be forme'd, a'tankhaving compressed air and provlded with a connection wlth the l1el--metfor'1n ect1ng air tnerelnto, aconnection between the connection'ofthetank and the helmet and the pneumaticfor keeping the same-inflated,fatank having-- oxygen and connected by means of a pipe withthe hel- Intestimony whereof I have signee'lf my met, and a tube having a mouthpiece to be name to this specification in the presence of 10 engaged dbythe mriuth of tge wearer and. two subscribing witnesses. connecte to thehe met to a 0rd communi- 5 cation with the exterior thereof, whereby ex-WILLIAM WESLEY STALLWORTH' haling may be facilitated, and. means where-Witnesses: by a fluid spray may be injected into the JAMES G. CARTER,helmet. W. R. CUMMINS.

Wemflee et thte patewt may be obtained for five centc each, byaddressing the "@cmmtaatener ct Wateate,

' athimmem, D. W

